1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a break down desk, of the kind commonly used in a home or office, that is adapted to be quickly and easily assembled and disassembled without the use of tools to facilitate storage and transport in compact shipping containers. The desk top of the break down desk has an efficient wire and cable routing system to avoid unsightly and space-consuming wire and cable runs from electrical apparatus to a source of power.
2. Background Art
It is known for articles that are to be used in the home and office to be shipped to retailers and delivered to consumers unassembled in a shipping container. In the case of furniture, such disassembled and packaged household office articles are typically small and lightweight. Because of its large size, correspondingly heavy weight and complexity, it is not always practical to ship a desk to the consumer in a disassembled condition. Where a desk has been shipped unassembled, the consumer is often required to use special skill and have access to tools by which fasteners are inserted to connect the parts of the desk together. Accordingly, it would be desirable to have a break down desk that can be shipped to retailers and carried to the home of a consumer in a disassembled condition within a series of compact shipping containers so as to be efficiently transported and quickly and easily assembled without the use of special tools or skill.
With a varied assortment of readily available electrical apparatus (e.g., a lamp, telephone, pencil sharpener, personal and portable computers, etc.) to be laid and used upon the desktop, it is becoming increasingly difficult to manage the routing of wires and cables from the apparatus to a power source such as that available from an AC wall receptacle. The wire and cable runs may intersect, creating an unsightly appearance and an obtrusive environment which consumes valuable space on top of and down the sides of the desk. Computer cables may sometimes be too short to reach a wall receptacle and, therefore, require a cumbersome extension cord. Accordingly, it would also be desirable to have a desk with an efficient wire and cable routing management system by which wires and cables can be connected from desk mounted electrical apparatus to a suitable source of power in an organized and innocuous manner so as not to interfere with an efficient use of the desktop work surface.